Dynamic range detection and positioning utilizing leaky wave antennas

ABSTRACT

Methods and systems for dynamic range detection and positioning utilizing leaky wave antennas (LWAs) are disclosed and may include configuring one or more LWAs to enable communication of signals in a particular direction. RF signals that are reflected from an object may be received via the LWAs, and a location of the object may be determined based on the received reflected RF signals. The velocity of the object may be determined based on a Doppler shift associated with the received reflected RF signals. A frequency chirped signal may be transmitted by the LWAs to determine a location of the object. A resonant frequency of the LWAs may be configured utilizing micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) deflection. LWAs may be situated along a plurality of axes in the wireless device. The LWAs may include microstrip or coplanar waveguides, where a cavity height is dependent on spacing between conductive lines in the waveguides.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS/INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 12/797,203 filed Jun. 9,2010.

This application makes reference to, claims the benefit from, and claimspriority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/246,618 filed onSep. 29, 2009, and U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/185,245filed on Jun. 9, 2009.

This application also makes reference to:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/650,212 filed on Dec. 30, 2009;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/650,295 filed on Dec. 30, 2009;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/650,277 filed on Dec. 30, 2009;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/650,192 filed on Dec. 30, 2009;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/650,224 filed on Dec. 30, 2009;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/650,176 filed on Dec. 30, 2009;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/650,246 filed on Dec. 30, 2009;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/650,292 filed on Dec. 30, 2009;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/650,324 filed on Dec. 30, 2009;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/708,366 filed on Feb. 18, 2010;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/751,550 filed on Mar. 31, 2010;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/751,768 filed on Mar. 31, 2010;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/751,759 filed on Mar. 31, 2010;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/751,593 filed on Mar. 31, 2010;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/751,772 filed on Mar. 31, 2010;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/751,777 filed on Mar. 31, 2010;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/751,782 filed on Mar. 31, 2010;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/751,792 filed on Mar. 31, 2010;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/790,279 filed on May 28, 2010;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/797,029 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/797,133 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/797,162 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/796,177 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/797,822 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/796,214 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/797,841 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/796,232 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/796,862 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/797,975 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/797,041 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/797,112 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/797,254 filed on even date    herewith;-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/797,273 filed on even date    herewith; and-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/797,316 filed on even date    herewith.

Each of the above stated applications is hereby incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

[Not Applicable]

MICROFICHE/COPYRIGHT REFERENCE

[Not Applicable]

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Certain embodiments of the invention relate to wireless communication.More specifically, certain embodiments of the invention relate to amethod and system for dynamic range detection and positioning utilizingleaky wave antennas.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Mobile communications have changed the way people communicate and mobilephones have been transformed from a luxury item to an essential part ofevery day life. The use of mobile phones is today dictated by socialsituations, rather than hampered by location or technology. While voiceconnections fulfill the basic need to communicate, and mobile voiceconnections continue to filter even further into the fabric of every daylife, the mobile Internet is the next step in the mobile communicationrevolution. The mobile Internet is poised to become a common source ofeveryday information, and easy, versatile mobile access to this datawill be taken for granted.

As the number of electronic devices enabled for wireline and/or mobilecommunications continues to increase, significant efforts exist withregard to making such devices more power efficient. For example, a largepercentage of communications devices are mobile wireless devices andthus often operate on battery power. Additionally, transmit and/orreceive circuitry within such mobile wireless devices often account fora significant portion of the power consumed within these devices.Moreover, in some conventional communication systems, transmittersand/or receivers are often power inefficient in comparison to otherblocks of the portable communication devices. Accordingly, thesetransmitters and/or receivers have a significant impact on battery lifefor these mobile wireless devices.

Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional and traditionalapproaches will become apparent to one of skill in the art, throughcomparison of such systems with the present invention as set forth inthe remainder of the present application with reference to the drawings.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A system and/or method for dynamic range detection and positioningutilizing leaky wave antennas as shown in and/or described in connectionwith at least one of the figures, as set forth more completely in theclaims.

Various advantages, aspects and novel features of the present invention,as well as details of an illustrated embodiment thereof, will be morefully understood from the following description and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary wireless system with leakywave antennas for dynamic range detection and positioning, which may beutilized in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary leaky wave antenna,in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a plan view of exemplarypartially reflective surfaces, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary phase dependence ofa leaky wave antenna, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5A is a block diagram illustrating exemplary in-phase andout-of-phase beam shapes for a leaky wave antenna, in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 5B is a block diagram illustrating dynamic range detection andpositioning utilizing leaky wave antennas, in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a leaky wave antenna withvariable input impedance feed points, in accordance with an embodimentof the invention.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a cross-sectional view ofcoplanar and microstrip waveguides, in accordance with an embodiment ofthe invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating leaky wave antennas for dynamic rangedetection and positioning, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating exemplary steps for dynamic rangedetection and positioning utilizing leaky wave antennas, in accordancewith an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Certain aspects of the invention may be found in a method and system fordynamic range detection and positioning utilizing leaky wave antennas.Exemplary aspects of the invention may comprise configuring one or moreleaky wave antennas to enable communication of signals in a particulardirection. RF signals that are reflected from an object may be receivedvia the configured one or more leaky wave antennas, and a location ofthe object may be determined based on the received reflected RF signals.The velocity of the object may be determined based on a Doppler shiftassociated with the received reflected RF signals. A frequency may bechirped of an RF signal transmitted by the configured one or more leakywave antennas. A location of the object may be determined based on thereceived reflected RF signals resulting from the chirping of thefrequency of the transmitted RF signal. A resonant frequency of the oneor more leaky wave antennas may be configured utilizingmicro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) deflection. One or more leakywave antennas may be situated along a plurality of axes in the wirelessdevice. The one or more leaky wave antennas may comprise microstripwaveguides, where a cavity height of the one or more leaky wave antennasis dependent on spacing between conductive lines in the microstripwaveguides. The one or more leaky wave antennas may comprise coplanarwaveguides, wherein a cavity height of the one or more leaky waveantennas is dependent on spacing between conductive lines in thecoplanar waveguides. The one or more leaky wave antennas may beintegrated in one or more integrated circuits flip-chip bonded to one ormore integrated circuit packages, in one or more integrated circuitpackages flip-chip bonded to one or more printed circuit boards, and/orone in or more printed circuit boards.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an exemplary wireless system with leakywave antennas for dynamic range detection and positioning, which may beutilized in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. Referring toFIG. 1, the wireless device 150 may comprise an antenna 151, atransceiver 152, a baseband processor 154, a processor 156, a systemmemory 158, a logic block 160, a chip 162, leaky wave antennas164A-164C, switches 165, an external headset port 166, and an integratedcircuit package 167. The wireless device 150 may also comprise an analogmicrophone 168, integrated hands-free (IHF) stereo speakers 170, aprinted circuit board 171, a hearing aid compatible (HAC) coil 174, adual digital microphone 176, a vibration transducer 178, a keypad and/ortouchscreen 180, and a display 182.

The transceiver 152 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry,interface(s), and/or code that may be enabled to modulate and upconvertbaseband signals to RF signals for transmission by one or more antennas,which may be represented generically by the antenna 151. The transceiver152 may also be enabled to downconvert and demodulate received RFsignals to baseband signals. The RF signals may be received by one ormore antennas, which may be represented generically by the antenna 151,or the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C. Different wireless systems may usedifferent antennas for transmission and reception. The transceiver 152may be enabled to execute other functions, for example, filtering thebaseband and/or RF signals, and/or amplifying the baseband and/or RFsignals. Although a single transceiver 152 is shown, the invention isnot so limited. Accordingly, the transceiver 152 may be implemented as aseparate transmitter and a separate receiver. In addition, there may bea plurality of transceivers, transmitters and/or receivers. In thisregard, the plurality of transceivers, transmitters and/or receivers mayenable the wireless device 150 to handle a plurality of wirelessprotocols and/or standards including cellular, WLAN and PAN. Wirelesstechnologies handled by the wireless device 150 may comprise GSM, CDMA,CDMA2000, WCDMA, GMS, GPRS, EDGE, WIMAX, WLAN, 3GPP, UMTS, BLUETOOTH,and ZigBee, for example.

The baseband processor 154 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry,interface(s), and/or code that may be enabled to process basebandsignals for transmission via the transceiver 152 and/or the basebandsignals received from the transceiver 152. The processor 156 may be anysuitable processor or controller such as a CPU, DSP, ARM, or any type ofintegrated circuit processor. The processor 156 may comprise suitablelogic, circuitry, and/or code that may be enabled to control theoperations of the transceiver 152 and/or the baseband processor 154. Forexample, the processor 156 may be utilized to update and/or modifyprogrammable parameters and/or values in a plurality of components,devices, and/or processing elements in the transceiver 152 and/or thebaseband processor 154. At least a portion of the programmableparameters may be stored in the system memory 158.

Control and/or data information, which may comprise the programmableparameters, may be transferred from other portions of the wirelessdevice 150, not shown in FIG. 1, to the processor 156. Similarly, theprocessor 156 may be enabled to transfer control and/or datainformation, which may include the programmable parameters, to otherportions of the wireless device 150, not shown in FIG. 1, which may bepart of the wireless device 150.

The processor 156 may utilize the received control and/or datainformation, which may comprise the programmable parameters, todetermine an operating mode of the transceiver 152. For example, theprocessor 156 may be utilized to select a specific frequency for a localoscillator, a specific gain for a variable gain amplifier, configure thelocal oscillator and/or configure the variable gain amplifier foroperation in accordance with various embodiments of the invention.Moreover, the specific frequency selected and/or parameters needed tocalculate the specific frequency, and/or the specific gain value and/orthe parameters, which may be utilized to calculate the specific gain,may be stored in the system memory 158 via the processor 156, forexample. The information stored in system memory 158 may be transferredto the transceiver 152 from the system memory 158 via the processor 156.

The system memory 158 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry,interface(s), and/or code that may be enabled to store a plurality ofcontrol and/or data information, including parameters needed tocalculate frequencies and/or gain, and/or the frequency value and/orgain value. The system memory 158 may store at least a portion of theprogrammable parameters that may be manipulated by the processor 156.

The logic block 160 may comprise suitable logic, circuitry,interface(s), and/or code that may enable controlling of variousfunctionalities of the wireless device 150. For example, the logic block160 may comprise one or more state machines that may generate signals tocontrol the transceiver 152 and/or the baseband processor 154. The logicblock 160 may also comprise registers that may hold data forcontrolling, for example, the transceiver 152 and/or the basebandprocessor 154. The logic block 160 may also generate and/or store statusinformation that may be read by, for example, the processor 156.Amplifier gains and/or filtering characteristics, for example, may becontrolled by the logic block 160.

The BT radio/processor 163 may comprise suitable circuitry, logic,interface(s), and/or code that may enable transmission and reception ofBluetooth signals. The BT radio/processor 163 may enable processingand/or handling of BT baseband signals. In this regard, the BTradio/processor 163 may process or handle BT signals received and/or BTsignals transmitted via a wireless communication medium. The BTradio/processor 163 may also provide control and/or feedback informationto/from the baseband processor 154 and/or the processor 156, based oninformation from the processed BT signals. The BT radio/processor 163may communicate information and/or data from the processed BT signals tothe processor 156 and/or to the system memory 158. Moreover, the BTradio/processor 163 may receive information from the processor 156and/or the system memory 158, which may be processed and transmitted viathe wireless communication medium a Bluetooth headset, for example.

The CODEC 172 may comprise suitable circuitry, logic, interface(s),and/or code that may process audio signals received from and/orcommunicated to input/output devices. The input devices may be within orcommunicatively coupled to the wireless device 150, and may comprise theanalog microphone 168, the stereo speakers 170, the hearing aidcompatible (HAC) coil 174, the dual digital microphone 176, and thevibration transducer 178, for example. The CODEC 172 may be operable toup-convert and/or down-convert signal frequencies to desired frequenciesfor processing and/or transmission via an output device. The CODEC 172may enable utilizing a plurality of digital audio inputs, such as 16 or18-bit inputs, for example. The CODEC 172 may also enable utilizing aplurality of data sampling rate inputs. For example, the CODEC 172 mayaccept digital audio signals at sampling rates such as 8 kHz, 11.025kHz, 12 kHz, 16 kHz, 22.05 kHz, 24 kHz, 32 kHz, 44.1 kHz, and/or 48 kHz.The CODEC 172 may also support mixing of a plurality of audio sources.For example, the CODEC 172 may support audio sources such as generalaudio, polyphonic ringer, I²S FM audio, vibration driving signals, andvoice. In this regard, the general audio and polyphonic ringer sourcesmay support the plurality of sampling rates that the audio CODEC 172 isenabled to accept, while the voice source may support a portion of theplurality of sampling rates, such as 8 kHz and 16 kHz, for example.

The chip 162 may comprise an integrated circuit with multiple functionalblocks integrated within, such as the transceiver 152, the processor156, the baseband processor 154, the BT radio/processor 163, the leakywave antennas 164A, and the CODEC 172. The number of functional blocksintegrated in the chip 162 is not limited to the number shown in FIG. 1.Accordingly, any number of blocks may be integrated on the chip 162depending on chip space and wireless device 150 requirements, forexample. The chip 162 may be flip-chip bonded, for example, to thepackage 167, as described further with respect to FIG. 8.

The leaky wave antennas 164A-164C may comprise a resonant cavity with ahighly reflective surface and a lower reflectivity surface, and may beintegrated in and/or on the chip 162, the package 167, and or theprinted circuit board 171. The lower reflectivity surface may allow theresonant mode to “leak” out of the cavity. The lower reflectivitysurface of the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C may be configured withslots in a metal surface, or a pattern of metal patches, as describedfurther in FIGS. 2 and 3. The physical dimensions of the leaky waveantennas 164A-164C may be configured to optimize bandwidth oftransmission and/or the beam pattern radiated or received. Byintegrating the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C on the package 167 and/orthe printed circuit board 171, the dimensions of the leaky wave antennas164A-164C may not be limited by the size of the chip 162.

In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the leaky wave antennas164A-164C may be operable to determine the position and distance of anobject from the wireless device. Accordingly, the leaky wave antennas164A-164C may be operable to transmit RF signals toward an object anddetermine the distance from the wireless device based on the time toreflect the signal. In addition, the Doppler shift of the reflectedsignal may be utilized to determine a velocity of the object.

The switches 165 may comprise switches such as CMOS or MEMS switchesthat may be operable to switch different antennas of the leaky waveantennas 164A-164C to the transceiver 152 and/or switch elements inand/or out of the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C, such as the patches andslots described in FIG. 3. The switches 165 may enable the coupling ofPA's to different feed points on the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C,depending on the desired impedance seen at the feed point, or todifferent antennas to optimize resolution of channel scanning, such asby coupling to the antennas separated by the largest distance in thedesired scanning axis.

The external headset port 166 may comprise a physical connection for anexternal headset to be communicatively coupled to the wireless device150. The analog microphone 168 may comprise suitable circuitry, logic,interface(s), and/or code that may detect sound waves and convert themto electrical signals via a piezoelectric effect, for example. Theelectrical signals generated by the analog microphone 168 may compriseanalog signals that may require analog to digital conversion beforeprocessing.

The package 167 may comprise a ceramic package, a printed circuit board,or other support structure for the chip 162 and other components of thewireless device 150. In this regard, the chip 162 may be bonded to thepackage 167. The package 167 may comprise insulating and conductivematerial, for example, and may provide isolation between electricalcomponents mounted on the package 167.

The stereo speakers 170 may comprise a pair of speakers that may beoperable to generate audio signals from electrical signals received fromthe CODEC 172. The HAC coil 174 may comprise suitable circuitry, logic,and/or code that may enable communication between the wireless device150 and a T-coil in a hearing aid, for example. In this manner,electrical audio signals may be communicated to a user that utilizes ahearing aid, without the need for generating sound signals via aspeaker, such as the stereo speakers 170, and converting the generatedsound signals back to electrical signals in a hearing aid, andsubsequently back into amplified sound signals in the user's ear, forexample.

The dual digital microphone 176 may comprise suitable circuitry, logic,interface(s), and/or code that may be operable to detect sound waves andconvert them to electrical signals. The electrical signals generated bythe dual digital microphone 176 may comprise digital signals, and thusmay not require analog to digital conversion prior to digital processingin the CODEC 172. The dual digital microphone 176 may enable beamformingcapabilities, for example.

The vibration transducer 178 may comprise suitable circuitry, logic,interface(s), and/or code that may enable notification of an incomingcall, alerts and/or message to the wireless device 150 without the useof sound. The vibration transducer may generate vibrations that may bein synch with, for example, audio signals such as speech or music.

In operation, control and/or data information, which may comprise theprogrammable parameters, may be transferred from other portions of thewireless device 150, not shown in FIG. 1, to the processor 156.Similarly, the processor 156 may be enabled to transfer control and/ordata information, which may include the programmable parameters, toother portions of the wireless device 150, not shown in FIG. 1, whichmay be part of the wireless device 150.

The processor 156 may utilize the received control and/or datainformation, which may comprise the programmable parameters, todetermine an operating mode of the transceiver 152. For example, theprocessor 156 may be utilized to select a specific frequency for a localoscillator, a specific gain for a variable gain amplifier, configure thelocal oscillator and/or configure the variable gain amplifier foroperation in accordance with various embodiments of the invention.Moreover, the specific frequency selected and/or parameters needed tocalculate the specific frequency, and/or the specific gain value and/orthe parameters, which may be utilized to calculate the specific gain,may be stored in the system memory 158 via the processor 156, forexample. The information stored in system memory 158 may be transferredto the transceiver 152 from the system memory 158 via the processor 156.

The CODEC 172 in the wireless device 150 may communicate with theprocessor 156 in order to transfer audio data and control signals.Control registers for the CODEC 172 may reside within the processor 156.The processor 156 may exchange audio signals and control information viathe system memory 158. The CODEC 172 may up-convert and/or down-convertthe frequencies of multiple audio sources for processing at a desiredsampling rate.

The leaky wave antennas 164A-164C may be operable to transmit and/orreceive wireless signals. In an exemplary embodiment of the invention,the leaky wave antennas may be situated along two or more axes such thatwhen the frequency of transmission or reception is swept across theresonant frequency of the leaky wave antennas, the angle of the beamtransmitted or reflected is swept along these axes.

In addition, the frequency of the transmission and/or reception may bedetermined by the cavity height of the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C.Accordingly, the reflective surfaces may be integrated at differentheights or lateral spacing in the chip 162, the package 167, and/or theprinted circuit board 171, thereby configuring leaky wave antennas withdifferent resonant frequencies.

In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the resonant cavityfrequency of the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C may be configured bytuning the cavity height using MEMS actuation. Accordingly, a biasvoltage may be applied such that one or both of the reflective surfacesof the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C may be deflected by the appliedpotential. In this manner, the cavity height, and thus the resonantfrequency of the cavity, may be configured. Similarly, the patterns ofslots and/or patches in the partially reflected surface may beconfigured by the switches 165.

Different frequency signals may be transmitted and/or received by theleaky wave antennas 164A-164C by selectively coupling the transceiver152 to leaky wave antennas with different cavity heights. For example,leaky wave antennas with reflective surfaces on the top and the bottomof the package 167 may have the largest cavity height, and thus providethe lowest resonant frequency. Conversely, leaky wave antennas with areflective surface on the surface of the package 167 and anotherreflective surface just below the surface of the package 167, mayprovide a higher resonant frequency. The selective coupling may beenabled by the switches 165 and/or CMOS devices in the chip 162.

In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the leaky wave antennas164A-164C may be configured to sweep the angle of transmission of RFsignals by sweeping the frequency of the feed signal across the resonantfrequency of the leaky wave antennas. The leaky wave antennas 164A-164Cmay then be configured to sweep the angle of reception of RF signalswhile monitoring the RF signal strength at each of the leaky waveantennas 164A-164C. In this manner, the leaky wave antennas 164A-164Cmay be operable to determine the position and distance of an object fromthe wireless device 150. Accordingly, the leaky wave antennas 164A-164Cmay be operable to transmit RF signals toward an object and determinethe distance from the wireless device 150 based on the time to reflectthe signal. In addition, the Doppler shift of the reflected signal maybe utilized to determine a velocity of the object.

The determination of the velocity of the object may be achieved bydetermining the Doppler shift of the reflected signal from a fixedfrequency transmitted signal. Similarly, a fixed frequency measurementof time between the transmission of a signal and receiving of thereflected signal may be utilized. In another exemplary embodiment, thedistance of a fixed object may be determined by transmitting a chirpedsignal or chirp, with the reflected signal being utilized to accuratelydetermine the position of the object. In this manner, a two-step processmay be utilized to accurately determine the range and velocity of anobject.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary leaky wave antenna,in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 2,there is shown the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C comprising a partiallyreflective surface 201A, a reflective surface 201B, and a feed point203. The space between the partially reflective surface 201A and thereflective surface 201B may be filled with dielectric material, forexample, and the height, h, between the partially reflective surface201A and the reflective surface 201B may be utilized to configure thefrequency of transmission of the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C. Inanother embodiment of the invention, an air gap may be integrated in thespace between the partially reflective surface 201A and the reflectivesurface 201B to enable MEMS actuation. There is also shown(micro-electromechanical systems) MEMS bias voltages, +V_(MEMS) and−V_(MEMS).

The feed point 203 may comprise an input terminal for applying an inputvoltage to or receiving an output voltage from the leaky wave antennas164A-164C. The invention is not limited to a single feed point 203, asthere may be any amount of feed points for different phases of signal ora plurality of signal sources, for example, to be applied to and/orreceived from the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C.

In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the height, h, may beone-half the wavelength of the desired transmitted mode from the leakywave antennas 164A-164C. In this manner, the phase of an electromagneticmode that traverses the cavity twice may be coherent with the inputsignal at the feed point 203, thereby configuring a resonant cavityknown as a Fabry-Perot cavity. The magnitude of the resonant mode maydecay exponentially in the lateral direction from the feed point 203,thereby reducing or eliminating the need for confinement structures tothe sides of the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C. The input impedance ofthe leaky wave antennas 164A-164C may be configured by the verticalplacement of the feed point 203, as described further in FIG. 6.

In operation, a signal to be transmitted via a power amplifier in thetransceiver 152 may be communicated to the feed point 203 of the leakywave antennas 164A-164C with a frequency f, or a signal to be receivedby the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C may be directed at the antenna. Thecavity height, h, may be configured to correlate to one half thewavelength of a harmonic of the signal of frequency f. The signal maytraverse the height of the cavity and may be reflected by the partiallyreflective surface 201A, and then traverse the height back to thereflective surface 201B. Since the wave will have travelled a distancecorresponding to a full wavelength, constructive interference may resultand a resonant mode may thereby be established.

Leaky wave antennas may enable the configuration of high gain antennaswithout the need for a large array of antennas which require a complexfeed network and suffer from loss due to feed lines. The leaky waveantennas 164A-164C may be operable to transmit and/or receive wirelesssignals via conductive layers in and/or on the package 167 and/or theprinted circuit board 171. In this manner, the resonant frequency of thecavity may cover a wider range due to the larger size of the package 167and the printed circuit board 171, compared to the chip 162, withoutrequiring large areas needed for conventional antennas and associatedcircuitry. In addition, by integrating leaky wave antennas in aplurality of packages on one or more printed circuit boards, wirelesscommunication between packages may be enabled.

In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the frequency oftransmission and/or reception of the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C maybe configured by selecting one of the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C withthe appropriate cavity height for the desired frequency. The angle oftransmission may be configured by tuning the frequency of a signalcommunicated to the feed point 203. Similarly, the angle of reception ofsignals received from the leaky wave antenna may be configured by tuningthe frequency of the signal received from the feed point 203, such as byfiltering out other frequencies at the feed point 203.

In another embodiment of the invention, the cavity height, h, may beconfigured by MEMS actuation. For example, the bias voltages +V_(MEMS)and −V_(MEMS) may deflect one or both of the reflective surfaces 201Aand 201B compared to zero bias, thereby configuring the resonantfrequency of the cavity.

The leaky wave antennas 164A-164C may be operable to determine theposition and distance of an object from the wireless device 150.Accordingly, the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C may be operable totransmit RF signals toward an object and determine the distance from thewireless device 150 as well as velocity based on the reflected thesignal. The determination of the velocity of the object may be achievedby determining the Doppler shift of the reflected signal from a fixedfrequency transmitted signal. Similarly, a fixed frequency measurementof time between the transmission of a signal and receiving of thereflected signal may be utilized. In another exemplary embodiment, thedistance of a fixed object may be determined by transmitting a chirpedsignal or chirp, with the reflected signal being utilized to accuratelydetermine the position of the object. In this manner, a two-step processmay be utilized to accurately determine the range and velocity of anobject.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a plan view of exemplarypartially reflective surfaces, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. Referring to FIG. 3, there is shown a partially reflectivesurface 300 comprising periodic slots in a metal surface, and apartially reflective surface 320 comprising periodic metal patches. Thepartially reflective surfaces 300/320 may comprise different embodimentsof the partially reflective surface 201A described with respect to FIG.2.

The spacing, dimensions, shape, and orientation of the slots and/orpatches in the partially reflective surfaces 300/320 may be utilized toconfigure the bandwidth, and thus Q-factor, of the resonant cavitydefined by the partially reflective surfaces 300/320 and a reflectivesurface, such as the reflective surface 201B, described with respect toFIG. 2. The partially reflective surfaces 300/320 may thus comprisefrequency selective surfaces due to the narrow bandwidth of signals thatmay leak out of the structure as configured by the slots and/or patches.

The spacing between the patches and/or slots may be related towavelength of the signal transmitted and/or received, which may besomewhat similar to beamforming with multiple antennas. The length ofthe slots and/or patches may be several times larger than the wavelengthof the transmitted and/or received signal or less, for example, sincethe leakage from the slots and/or regions surround the patches may addup, similar to beamforming with multiple antennas.

In an embodiment of the invention, the slots/patches may be configuredvia CMOS and/or micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) switches, such asthe switches 165 described with respect to FIG. 1, to tune the Q of theresonant cavity. The slots and/or patches may be configured inconductive layers in and/or on the package 167 and may be shortedtogether or switched open utilizing the switches 165. In this manner, RFsignals, such as 60 GHz signals, for example, may be transmitted fromvarious locations without the need for additional circuitry andconventional antennas with their associated circuitry that requirevaluable chip space.

In another embodiment of the invention, the slots or patches may beconfigured in conductive layers in a vertical plane of the chip 162, thepackage 167, and/or the printed circuit board 171, thereby enabling thecommunication of wireless signals in a horizontal direction in thestructure.

In another exemplary embodiment of the invention, the partiallyreflective surfaces 300/320 may be integrated in and/or on the package167. In this manner, different frequency signals may be transmittedand/or received. Accordingly, a partially reflective surface 300/320integrated within the package 167 and a reflective surface 201B maytransmit and/or receive signals at a higher frequency signal than from aresonant cavity defined by a partially reflective surface 300/320 onsurface of the package 167 and a reflective surface 201B on the othersurface of the package 167.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary phase dependence ofa leaky wave antenna, in accordance with an embodiment of the invention.Referring to FIG. 4, there is shown a leaky wave antenna comprising thepartially reflective surface 201A, the reflective surface 201B, and thefeed point 203. In-phase condition 400 illustrates the relative beamshape transmitted by the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C when thefrequency of the signal communicated to the feed point 203 matches thatof the resonant cavity as defined by the cavity height, h, and thedielectric constant of the material between the reflective surfaces.

Similarly, out-of-phase condition 420 illustrates the relative beamshape transmitted by the leaky wave antennas 164A-164C when thefrequency of the signal communicated to the feed point 203 does notmatch that of the resonant cavity. The resulting beam shape may beconical, as opposed to a single main vertical node. These areillustrated further with respect to FIG. 5. The leaky wave antennas164A-164C may be integrated at various heights in the chip 162, thepackage 167, and/or the printed circuit board 171, thereby providing aplurality of transmission and reception sites with varying resonantfrequency.

By configuring the leaky wave antennas for in-phase and out-of-phaseconditions, signals possessing different characteristics may be directedout of and/or into the chip 162, the package 167, and/or the printedcircuit board 171 in desired directions, thereby enabling wirelesscommunication between a plurality of devices and directions. In anexemplary embodiment of the invention, the angle at which signals may betransmitted by a leaky wave antenna may be dynamically controlled sothat the transmitted signals may be directed in a desired direction fordynamic range detection and positioning of objects, for example. Inanother embodiment of the invention, the leaky wave antennas 164A-164Cmay be operable to receive reflected RF signals, such as 60 GHz signals,for example. The direction of received signals may be configured by thein-phase and out-of-phase conditions.

Similarly, by utilizing a plurality of leaky wave antennas to transmit asignal, the reflected signal may be utilized to determine range andvelocity of the object. The determination of the velocity of the objectmay be achieved by determining the Doppler shift of the reflected signalfrom a fixed frequency transmitted signal. Similarly, a fixed frequencymeasurement of time between the transmission of a signal and receivingof the reflected signal may be utilized. In another exemplaryembodiment, the distance of a fixed object may be determined bytransmitting a chirped signal or chirp, with the reflected signal beingutilized to accurately determine the position of the object. In thismanner, a two-step process may be utilized to accurately determine therange and velocity of an object. For example, leaky wave antennas may belocated on perpendicular axes, such that two antennas on a single axiscan sweep transmission and reception angle of RF signals along thataxis, and antennas along a perpendicular axis may be operable to sweeptransmission and reception along that axis. Thus, the range and locationof an object may be tracked across an entire field-of-view of theplurality of leaky wave antennas.

FIG. 5A is a block diagram illustrating exemplary in-phase andout-of-phase beam shapes for a leaky wave antenna, in accordance with anembodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 5A, there is shown a plot500 of transmitted signal beam shape versus angle, Θ, for the in-phaseand out-of-phase conditions for a leaky wave antenna.

The In-phase curve in the plot 500 may correlate to the case where thefrequency of the signal communicated to a leaky wave antenna matches theresonant frequency of the cavity. In this manner, a single vertical mainnode may result. In instances where the frequency of the signal at thefeed point is not at the resonant frequency, a double, or conical-shapednode may be generated as shown by the Out-of-phase curve in the plot500. By configuring the leaky wave antennas for in-phase andout-of-phase conditions, signals may be directed out of or into the chip162, package 167, and/or the printed circuit board 171 in desireddirections.

FIG. 5B is a block diagram illustrating dynamic range detection andpositioning utilizing leaky wave antennas, in accordance with anembodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 5B, there is shown thewireless device 150, an object 501, and leaky wave antennas 503A-503D.The wireless device 150 is as described with respect to FIG. 1, and isshown in two views in FIG. 5B to illustrate an exemplary arrangement ofleaky wave antennas on two perpendicular axes and how the transmittedand/or receive beams may be scanned.

The object 501 may comprise an object that reflects RF signals. Theleaky wave antennas 503A-503D may be substantially similar to the leakywave antennas 164A-164D and may be integrated in the chip 162, thepackage 167, and/or the printed circuit board 171, for example. Theleaky wave antennas 503A-503D may be operable to scan the angle oftransmission and/or reception of RF signals by tuning the frequency ofsignals communicated to or received from the feed points of theantennas.

In operation, the wireless device 150 may be operable to determine therange, position, and/or velocity of objects by transmitting RF signalsand receiving the reflected signals. Accordingly, the wireless device150 may be operable to scan the transmitted frequency of the leaky waveantennas 503A-503D. The reflected signals may then be measured todetermine a time of travel and/or a Doppler shift that may result wherethe object 501 is moving with respect to the wireless device 150. Thedetermination of the velocity of the object may be achieved bydetermining the Doppler shift of the reflected signal from a fixedfrequency transmitted signal. Similarly, a fixed frequency measurementof time between the transmission of a signal and receiving of thereflected signal may be utilized. In another exemplary embodiment, thedistance of a fixed object may be determined by transmitting a chirpedsignal or chirp, with the reflected signal being utilized to accuratelydetermine the position of the object. In this manner, a two-step processmay be utilized to accurately determine the range and velocity of anobject.

By scanning a plurality of leaky wave antennas on perpendicular axes andmonitoring the received signals, a range, location, and/or velocity ofan object 501 may be determined. The measured signal strengths may beutilized to triangulate the location of the moving object 501. Thetransmit/receive angle sweep may be repeated on a periodic or aperiodicbasis.

A constant frequency may be transmitted and the reflected RF signal maybe measured for a Doppler shift indicating relative velocity withrespect to the wireless devices. In addition, a chirped signal may betransmitted by the leaky wave antennas 164A-164D for accuratemeasurement of distance between the object 501 and the wireless device150. The frequency shift in the chirping may not be significant enoughto change the angle of transmission significantly. In another exemplaryembodiment of the invention, the angle of transmission/reception of theleaky wave antennas 503A-503D may be configured by MEMS actuation of oneor more reflective surfaces in the antennas. In this manner, theresonant frequency may be tuned by MEMS actuation at the same time asthe chirp, thereby compensating for any change in the angle oftransmission/reception.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a leaky wave antenna withvariable input impedance feed points, in accordance with an embodimentof the invention. Referring to FIG. 6, there is shown a leaky waveantenna 600 comprising the partially reflective surface 201A and thereflective surface 201B. There is also shown feed points 601A-601C. Thefeed points 601A-601C may be located at different positions along theheight, h, of the cavity thereby configuring different impedance pointsfor the leaky wave antenna.

In this manner, a leaky wave antenna may be utilized to couple to aplurality of power amplifiers, or a configurable power amplifier withvarying output impedances. For example, in instances where a poweramplifier is operated in a high gain, low output impedanceconfiguration, it may be coupled to a low impedance feed point, such asthe feed point 601A.

Similarly, by integrating leaky wave antennas in conductive layers inthe chip 162, the package 167, and/or the printed circuit board 171, theimpedance of the leaky wave antenna may be matched to the poweramplifier without impedance variations that may result with conventionalantennas and their proximity or distance to associated driverelectronics. In addition, by integrating reflective and partiallyreflective surfaces with varying cavity heights and varying feed points,leaky wave antennas with both different impedances and resonantfrequencies may be enabled. In an embodiment of the invention, theheights of the feed points 601A-601C may be configured by MEMSactuation.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating a cross-sectional view ofcoplanar and microstrip waveguides, in accordance with an embodiment ofthe invention. Referring to FIG. 7, there is shown a microstripwaveguide 720, a coplanar waveguide 730, and a support structure 701.The microstrip waveguide 720 may comprise signal conductive lines 723, aground plane 725, a resonant cavity 711A, and an insulating layer 727.The coplanar waveguide 730 may comprise signal conductive lines 731 and733, a resonant cavity 711B, the insulating layer 727, and a multi-layersupport structure 701. The support structure 701 may comprise the chip162, the package 167, and/or the printed circuit board 171, for example.

The signal conductive lines 723, 731, and 733 may comprise metal tracesor layers deposited in and/or on the insulating layer 727. In anotherembodiment of the invention, the signal conductive lines 723, 731, and733 may comprise poly-silicon or other conductive material. Theseparation and the voltage potential between the signal conductive line723 and the ground plane 725 may determine the electric field generatedtherein. In addition, the dielectric constant of the insulating layer727 may also determine the electric field between the signal conductiveline 723 and the ground plane 725.

The resonant cavities 711A and 711B may comprise the insulating layer727, an air gap, or a combination of an air gap and the insulating layer727, thereby enabling MEMS actuation and thus frequency tuning.

The insulating layer 727 may comprise SiO₂ or other insulating materialthat may provide a high resistance layer between the signal conductiveline 723 and the ground plane 725, and the signal conductive lines 731and 733. In addition, the electric field between the signal conductiveline 723 and the ground plane 725 may be dependent on the dielectricconstant of the insulating layer 727.

The thickness and the dielectric constant of the insulating layer 727may determine the electric field strength generated by the appliedsignal. The resonant cavity thickness of a leaky wave antenna may bedependent on the spacing between the signal conductive line 723 and theground plane 725, or the signal conductive lines 731 and 733, forexample.

The signal conductive lines 731 and 733, and the signal conductive line723 and the ground plane 725 may define resonant cavities for leaky waveantennas. Each layer may comprise a reflective surface or a partiallyreflective surface depending on the pattern of conductive material. Forexample, a partially reflective surface may be configured by alternatingconductive and insulating material in a desired pattern. In this manner,signals may be directed out of, or received into, a surface of the chip162, the package 167, and/or the printed circuit board 171, asillustrated with the microstrip waveguide 720. In another embodiment ofthe invention, signals may be communicated in the horizontal plane ofthe chip 162, the package 167, and/or the printed circuit board 171utilizing the coplanar waveguide 730.

The support structure 701 may provide mechanical support for themicrostrip waveguide 720, the coplanar waveguide 730, and other devicesthat may be integrated within. In another embodiment of the invention,the chip 162, the package 167, and/or the printed circuit board 171 maycomprise Si, GaAs, sapphire, InP, GaO, ZnO, CdTe, CdZnTe, ceramics,polytetrafluoroethylene, and/or Al₂O₃, for example, or any othersubstrate material that may be suitable for integrating microstripstructures.

In operation, a bias and/or a signal voltage may be applied across thesignal conductive line 723 and the ground plane 725, and/or the signalconductive lines 731 and 733 to transmit RF signals. Similarly, avoltage may be measured across the signal conductive line 723 and theground plane 725, and/or the signal conductive lines 731 and 733, tomeasure received RF signals. The thickness of a leaky wave antennaresonant cavity may be dependent on the distance between the conductivelines in the microstrip waveguide 720 and/or the coplanar transmissionwaveguide 730.

By alternating patches of conductive material with insulating material,or slots of conductive material in dielectric material, a partiallyreflective surface may result, which may allow a signal to “leak out” inthat direction, as shown by the Leaky Wave arrows in FIG. 7. In thismanner, wireless signals may be directed in to or out of the surfaceplane of the support structure 710, or parallel to the surface of thesupport structure 710.

Similarly, by sequentially placing the conductive signal lines 731 and733 with different spacing, different cavity heights may result, andthus different resonant frequencies, thereby forming a distributed leakywave antenna. In this manner, a plurality of signals at differentfrequencies may be transmitted from, or received by, the distributedleaky wave antenna.

By integrating the conductive signal lines 731 and 733 and the groundplane 725 in the package 167, wireless signals may be received by thepackage 167. Wireless signals may be communicated between packages inthe horizontal or vertical planes depending on which type of leaky waveantenna is enabled, such as a coplanar or microstrip structure. Feedpoints may be integrated at different heights or lateral distanceswithin the resonant cavity gaps 711A and 711B, respectively, therebyresulting in different impedances. The different impedance feed pointsmay be coupled to a PA depending on the output impedance of the PA in agiven output power configuration.

In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a plurality of leaky waveantennas may be integrated in the support structure 701 in anarrangement that enables scanning of transmission and/or reception intwo or more axes. By scanning a plurality of leaky wave antennas onperpendicular axes and monitoring the received signals, a range,location, and/or velocity of an object may be determined. A constantfrequency may be transmitted and the reflected RF signal may be measuredfor a Doppler shift indicating relative velocity with respect to thewireless devices. In addition, a chirped signal may be transmitted bythe leaky wave antennas for accurate measurement of distance between theobject and the wireless device 150. The frequency shift in the chirpingmay not be significant enough to change the angle of transmissionsignificantly. In another exemplary embodiment of the invention, theangle of transmission/reception of the leaky wave antennas may beconfigured by MEMS actuation of one or more reflective surfaces in theantennas thereby tuning the height of the resonant cavities 711A and711B. In this manner, the resonant frequency may be tuned by MEMSactuation at the same time as the chirp, thereby compensating for anychange in the angle of transmission/reception.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating leaky wave antennas for dynamic rangedetection and positioning, in accordance with an embodiment of theinvention. Referring to FIG. 8, there is shown metal layers 801A-801L,solder balls 803, thermal epoxy 807, leaky wave antennas 809A-809F, andmetal interconnects 811A-811C. The chip 162, the package 167, and theprinted circuit board 171 may be as described previously.

The chip 162, or integrated circuit, may comprise one or more componentsand/or systems within the wireless system 150. The chip 162 may bebump-bonded or flip-chip bonded to the package 167 utilizing the solderballs 803. Similarly, the package 167 may be flip-chip bonded to theprinted circuit board 171. In this manner, wire bonds connecting thechip 162 to the package 167 and the package 167 to the printed circuitboard 171 may be eliminated, thereby reducing and/or eliminatinguncontrollable stray inductances due to wire bonds, for example. Inaddition, the thermal conductance out of the chip 162 may be greatlyimproved utilizing the solder balls 803 and the thermal epoxy 807. Thethermal epoxy 807 may be electrically insulating but thermallyconductive to allow for thermal energy to be conducted out of the chip162 to the much larger thermal mass of the package 167.

The metal layers 801A-801L and the metal interconnects 811A-811C maycomprise deposited metal layers utilized to delineate and couple toleaky wave antennas in and/or on the chip 162, the package 167, and theprinted circuit board 171. The leaky wave antennas 809A-809F may beutilized to scan for RF signal sources by scanning the angle ofreception of the antennas. In addition, the leaky wave antenna 809F maycomprise conductive and insulating layers integrated in and/or on theprinted circuit board 171 extending into the cross-sectional view planeto enable communication of signals horizontally in the plane of theprinted circuit board 171, as illustrated by the coplanar waveguide 730described with respect to FIG. 7. This coplanar structure may also beutilized in the chip 162 and/or the package 167.

In an embodiment of the invention, the spacing between pairs of metallayers, for example 801A and 801B, 801C and 801D, 801E and 801F, and801G and 801H, may define vertical resonant cavities of leaky waveantennas. In this regard, a partially reflective surface, as shown inFIGS. 2 and 3, for example, may enable the resonant electromagnetic modein the cavity to leak out from that surface.

The metal layers 801A-801J comprising the leaky wave antennas 809A-809Emay comprise microstrip structures as described with respect to FIG. 7.The region between the metal layers 801A-801L may comprise a resistivematerial that may provide electrical isolation between the metal layers801A-801L thereby creating a resonant cavity. In an embodiment of theinvention, the region between the metal layers 801A-801L may compriseair and/or a combination of air and dielectric material, therebyenabling MEMS actuation of the metal layers 801A-801L.

The number of metal layers or leaky wave antennas is not limited to thenumber of metal layers 801A-801L or leaky wave antennas 809A-809F shownin FIG. 8. Accordingly, there may be any number of layers embeddedwithin and/or on the chip 162, the package 167, and/or the printedcircuit board 171, depending on the number of leaky wave antennas,traces, waveguides and other devices fabricated.

The solder balls 803 may comprise spherical balls of metal to provideelectrical, thermal and physical contact between the chip 162, thepackage 167, and/or the printed circuit board 171. In making the contactwith the solder balls 803, the chip 162 and/or the package 167 may bepressed with enough force to squash the metal spheres somewhat, and maybe performed at an elevated temperature to provide suitable electricalresistance and physical bond strength. The thermal epoxy 807 may fillthe volume between the solder balls 803 and may provide a high thermalconductance path for heat transfer out of the chip 162.

In operation, the chip 162 may comprise an RF front end, such as the RFtransceiver 152, described with respect to FIG. 1, and may be utilizedto transmit and/or receive RF signals, at 60 GHz, for example. The chip162 may be electrically coupled to the package 167. The package 167 maybe electrically coupled to the printed circuit board 171. In instanceswhere high frequency signals, 60 GHz or greater, for example, may becommunicated, leaky wave antennas in the chip 162, the package 167,and/or the printed circuit board 171 may be utilized to transmit signalsto external devices.

Lower frequency signals may be communicated via leaky wave antennas withlarger resonant cavity heights, such as the leaky wave antenna 809Eintegrated in the printed circuit board 171. However, higher frequencysignal signals may also be communicated from leaky wave antennasintegrated in the printed circuit board 171 by utilizing coplanarwaveguide leaky wave antennas, such as the leaky wave antenna 809F, orby utilizing microstrip waveguide leaky wave antennas with lower cavityheights, such as the leaky wave antennas 809D.

The leaky wave antenna 809F may comprise a coplanar waveguide structure,and may be operable to communicate wireless signals in the horizontalplane, parallel to the surface of the printed circuit board 171. In thismanner, signals may be communicated between laterally situatedstructures without the need to run lossy electrical signal lines.Coplanar waveguides on thinner structures, such as the chip 162, mayhave electromagnetic field lines that extend into the substrate, whichcan cause excessive absorption in lower resistivity substrates, such assilicon. For this reason, microstrip waveguides with a large groundplane may be used with lossy substrates. However, coplanar structurescan be used when a high resistivity substrate is utilized for the chip162.

The leaky wave antennas 809A-809E may comprise microstrip waveguidestructures, for example, that may be operable to wirelessly communicatesignals perpendicular to the plane of the supporting structure, such asthe chip 162, the package 167, and the printed circuit board 171. Inthis manner, wireless signals may be communicated between the chip 162,the package 167, and the printed circuit board 171, and also to devicesexternal to the wireless device 150 in the vertical direction.

The integration of leaky wave antennas in the chip 162, the package 167,and the printed circuit board 171 may result in the reduction of strayimpedances when compared to wire-bonded connections between structuresas in conventional systems, particularly for higher frequencies, such as60 GHz. In this manner, volume requirements may be reduced andperformance may be improved due to lower losses and accurate control ofimpedances via switches in the chip 162 or on the package 167, forexample.

In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, leaky wave antennas may bearranged along a plurality of axes, thereby enabling scanning afield-of-view for the leaky wave antennas. For example, the leaky waveantennas 809A-809C may be situated along one axes, with the leaky waveantenna 809B plus one or more leaky wave antennas along the axis intothe plane of the drawing defining the perpendicular axis.

An object may be located by scanning the transmitted signals of theleaky wave antennas 809A-809C and those in the axis into the plane ofthe figure, on perpendicular axes and monitoring the reflected signals.In instances where a constant frequency is transmitted, the reflected RFsignal may be measured for a Doppler shift indicating relative velocitywith respect to the wireless device. In addition, a chirped signal maybe transmitted by the leaky wave antennas for accurate measurement ofdistance between the object and the wireless device 150. The frequencyshift in the chirping may not be significant enough to significantlychange the angle of transmission. In another exemplary embodiment of theinvention, the angle of transmission/reception of the leaky waveantennas may be configured by MEMS actuation of one or more reflectivesurfaces in the antennas thereby tuning the height of the resonantcavities 711A and 711B. In this manner, the resonant frequency may betuned by MEMS actuation at the same time as the chirp, therebycompensating for any change in the angle of transmission/reception.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating exemplary steps for dynamic rangedetection and positioning utilizing leaky wave antennas, in accordancewith an embodiment of the invention. Referring to FIG. 9, in step 903after start step 901, the leaky wave antennas may be configured totransmit and receive signals at a starting angle. In step 905, the angleof transmission and reception of the leaky wave antennas may be sweptacross a field of view to reflect off of an object while measuring theDoppler shift of the reflected signal, thereby determining the relativevelocity of the object. In step 907, the transmitted signal may bechirped, and the received reflected signal may be utilized to accuratelydetermine the position of the reflecting object, particularly when theobject is not in motion, and thus no Doppler shift. In step 909, ininstances where the wireless device 150 is to be powered down, theexemplary steps may proceed to end step 911. In step 909, in instanceswhere the wireless device 150 is not to be powered down, the exemplarysteps may proceed to step 903 to configure the leaky wave antennas at adesired starting angle of transmission and reception.

In an embodiment of the invention, a method and system are disclosed forconfiguring one or more leaky wave antennas to enable communication ofsignals in a particular direction. RF signals that are reflected from anobject may be received via the configured one or more leaky waveantennas, and a location of the object may be determined based on thereceived reflected RF signals. The velocity of the object may bedetermined based on a Doppler shift associated with the receivedreflected RF signals. A frequency may be chirped of an RF signaltransmitted by the configured one or more leaky wave antennas. Alocation of the object may be determined based on the received reflectedRF signals resulting from the chirping of the frequency of thetransmitted RF signal.

In an embodiment of the invention, a method and system are disclosed forconfiguring a direction of transmission of one or more leaky waveantennas 164A-164C, 400, 420, 503A-503D, 600, 720, 730, and 809A-809F ina wireless device 150, reflecting a RF signal transmitted by the one ormore leaky wave antennas 164A-164C, 400, 420, 503A-503D, 600, 720, 730,and 809A-809F off of an object 501, and measuring a Doppler shift of thereflected signal to determine a velocity of the object 501. A frequencyof an RF signal transmitted by the one or more leaky wave antennas164A-164C, 400, 420, 503A-503D, 600, 720, 730, and 809A-809F may bechirped and a location of the object 501 may be determined based on thechirped RF signal that is reflected by the object 501. A resonantfrequency of the one or more leaky wave antennas 164A-164C, 400, 420,503A-503D, 600, 720, 730, and 809A-809F may be configured utilizingmicro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) deflection.

One or more leaky wave antennas 164A-164C, 400, 420, 503A-503D, 600,720, 730, and 809A-809F may be situated along a plurality of axes in thewireless device 150. The one or more leaky wave antennas 164A-164C, 400,420, 503A-503D, 600, 720, 730, and 809A-809F may comprise microstripwaveguides 720, wherein a cavity height of the one or more leaky waveantennas 164A-164C, 400, 420, 503A-503D, 600, 720, 730, and 809A-809F isdependent on spacing between conductive lines 723 and 725 in themicrostrip waveguides 720. The one or more leaky wave antennas164A-164C, 400, 420, 503A-503D, 600, 720, 730, and 809A-809F maycomprise coplanar waveguides 730, wherein a cavity height of the one ormore leaky wave antennas 164A-164C, 400, 420, 503A-503D, 600, 720, 730,and 809A-809F is dependent on spacing between conductive lines 731 and733 in the coplanar waveguides 730. The one or more leaky wave antennas164A-164C, 400, 420, 503A-503D, 600, 720, 730, and 809A-809F may beintegrated in one or more integrated circuits 162 flip-chip bonded toone or more integrated circuit packages 167, in one or more integratedcircuit packages 167 flip-chip bonded to one or more printed circuitboards 171, and/or one or more printed circuit boards 171.

Other embodiments of the invention may provide a non-transitory computerreadable medium and/or storage medium, and/or a non-transitory machinereadable medium and/or storage medium, having stored thereon, a machinecode and/or a computer program having at least one code sectionexecutable by a machine and/or a computer, thereby causing the machineand/or computer to perform the steps as described herein for dynamicrange detection and positioning utilizing leaky wave antennas.

Accordingly, aspects of the invention may be realized in hardware,software, firmware or a combination thereof. The invention may berealized in a centralized fashion in at least one computer system or ina distributed fashion where different elements are spread across severalinterconnected computer systems. Any kind of computer system or otherapparatus adapted for carrying out the methods described herein issuited. A typical combination of hardware, software and firmware may bea general-purpose computer system with a computer program that, whenbeing loaded and executed, controls the computer system such that itcarries out the methods described herein.

One embodiment of the present invention may be implemented as a boardlevel product, as a single chip, application specific integrated circuit(ASIC), or with varying levels integrated on a single chip with otherportions of the system as separate components. The degree of integrationof the system will primarily be determined by speed and costconsiderations. Because of the sophisticated nature of modernprocessors, it is possible to utilize a commercially availableprocessor, which may be implemented external to an ASIC implementationof the present system. Alternatively, if the processor is available asan ASIC core or logic block, then the commercially available processormay be implemented as part of an ASIC device with various functionsimplemented as firmware.

The present invention may also be embedded in a computer programproduct, which comprises all the features enabling the implementation ofthe methods described herein, and which when loaded in a computer systemis able to carry out these methods. Computer program in the presentcontext may mean, for example, any expression, in any language, code ornotation, of a set of instructions intended to cause a system having aninformation processing capability to perform a particular functioneither directly or after either or both of the following: a) conversionto another language, code or notation; b) reproduction in a differentmaterial form. However, other meanings of computer program within theunderstanding of those skilled in the art are also contemplated by thepresent invention.

While the invention has been described with reference to certainembodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art thatvarious changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention. In addition, manymodifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material tothe teachings of the present invention without departing from its scope.Therefore, it is intended that the present invention not be limited tothe particular embodiments disclosed, but that the present inventionwill include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appendedclaims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A wireless communication device comprising: atleast one leaky wave antenna configured to communicate signals; andcircuitry configured to set a direction in which the at least one leakywave antenna communicates the signals by adjusting a cavity height ofthe at least one leaky wave antenna, receive via the at least one leakywave antenna reflected RF signals that are reflected from an object, anddetermine a location of said object based on said reflected RF signals.2. The wireless communication device of claim 1 wherein the circuitry isfurther configured to determine a velocity of said object based on saidreflected RF signals.
 3. The wireless communication device of claims 2wherein the circuitry is further configured to determine said velocityof said object based on a Doppler shift associated with said reflectedRF signals.
 4. The wireless communication device of claim 1, wherein thecircuitry is further configured to chirp a frequency of an RF signaltransmitted by said at least one leaky wave antenna.
 5. The wirelesscommunication device of claim 4 wherein the circuitry is furtherconfigured to determine said location of said object based on saidreflected RF signals resulting from said chirping of said frequency. 6.The wireless communication device of claim 1 wherein the circuitry isfurther configured to set a resonant frequency of said at least oneleaky wave antenna utilizing micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS)deflection.
 7. The wireless communication device of claim 1 wherein saidat least one leaky wave antenna includes plural leaky wave antennassituated along a plurality of axes in said wireless communicationdevice.
 8. The wireless communication device of claim 1 wherein said atleast one leaky wave antenna includes microstrip waveguides.
 9. Thewireless communication device of claim 8 wherein the cavity height ofsaid at least one leaky wave antenna is dependent upon spacing betweenconductive lines in said microstrip waveguides.
 10. The wirelesscommunication device of claim 1 wherein said at least one leaky waveantenna includes coplanar waveguides.
 11. The wireless communicationdevice of claim 10 wherein the cavity height of said at least one leakywave antenna is present on spacing between conductive lines on saidcoplanar waveguides.
 12. A method for wireless communication utilizing awireless communication device that includes at least one leaky waveantenna, said method comprising: setting, with circuitry, a direction inwhich the at least one leaky wave antenna communicates signals byadjusting a cavity height of the at least one leaky wave antenna,receiving, by the circuitry via the at least one leaky wave antennareflected RF signals that are reflected from an object; and determining,with the circuitry, a location of said object based on said reflected RFsignals.
 13. The method of claim 12 further comprising determining avelocity of said object based on said reflected RF signals.
 14. Themethod of claim 12 further comprising chirping a frequency of an RFsignal transmitted by said at least one leaky wave antenna.
 15. Themethod of claim 14 further comprising determining said velocity of saidobject based on a Doppler shift associated with said reflected RFsignals.
 16. The method of claim 14 further comprising determining saidlocation of said object based on said reflected RF signals resultingfrom said chirping of said frequency.
 17. The method of claim 12 furthercomprising configuring a resonant frequency of said at least one leakywave antenna utilizing micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS)deflection.
 18. The method of claim 12 wherein said at least one leakywave antenna includes plural leaky wave antennas situated along aplurality of axes in said wireless communication device.
 19. The methodof claim 12 wherein said at least one leaky wave antenna includesmicrostrip waveguides.
 20. The method of claim 12 wherein said at leastone leaky wave antenna includes coplanar waveguides.